Myanmar junta sets Dec 28 poll date despite civil war

YANGON

Myanmar's junta said on Monday that long-promised elections will start on Dec. 28, despite a raging civil war that has put much of the country out of its control, and international monitors slating the poll as a charade.

Myanmar has been consumed by conflict since the military deposed the government of democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, making unsubstantiated allegations of electoral fraud.

Swathes of the country are beyond military control, administered by a myriad of pro-democracy guerrillas and powerful ethnic armed organizations that have pledged to block polls in their enclaves.

Analysts say the election will likely see junta chief Min Aung Hlaing maintain his power over any new government, either as president, military leader or some new office where he will consolidate control.

"I think this election is only being held to give power to military dictators until the world ends," said one Myanmar citizen in the western state of Rakhine.

"I don't think the election will hold any significance for the people," added the 63-year-old, declining to be named for security reasons.

Myanmar's civil war has killed thousands, left more than half the nation in poverty, and more than 3.5 million people living displaced.

The junta has touted elections as a way to end the conflict and offered cash rewards to opposition fighters willing to lay down their arms ahead of the vote.

However, Suu Kyi remains jailed, while many opposition lawmakers ousted by the coup are boycotting it and a U.N. expert has branded the exercise a "fraud" designed to rebrand continuing military rule.